Incredible shrinking senator: the Web revolt that shook Sotto’s world

SAN FRANCISCO – Social media and the World Wide Web are still relatively new, so intense debates on such issues as free speech, privacy and cybercrime are to be expected and even necessary.

But Tito Sotto is trying to drag the discussion to the lowest level possible.

“Gusto nila magpa-file naman ako ng bill, alisin na natin ang libel para pwede ko na rin silang murahin (If they want, I will file a bill to remove libel so I can also engage them in mudslinging),” the senator said in a radio interview, as reported in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

“Pwede, alisin natin para parehas na ang laban. Maganda yan, pag-aaralan ko yan hanggang Lunes (We can remove that to have a fair play. That’s a good idea. I will study that until Monday),” he said.

Welcome to the world of the incredible shrinking senator.

Beyond the debates on reproductive rights and the new anti-cybercrime law, Sotto’s rant creates another dilemma for Filipinos: How in the world do you explain to young Filipinos that a senator of the republic is behaving like a kid throwing a tantrum in the playground because other children refuse to play by his rules?

Some lawmakers and public officials argue that the reaction to the cybercrime law is overblown, that there really is no plan to arrest anyone for simply liking a post or sharing a tweet.

But many other legal experts and press freedom advocates highlight the potential for abuse. This was underscored by the controversy over an alleged Philippine National Police Facebook account which posted a warning, “Foul words against our police officers can be used as evidence now to file a case against you in a court of law.”

The PNP has denied that it has anything to do with the account. But whoever posted the comment sure sounded like they knew what they were talking about, and are gleefully excited by the power the new law gives law enforcers.

“Watch out the CIDG Anti-Transnational Crime is now conducting background investigation against you,” the post said, even boasting that the PNP “has sets of equipment comparable or even more sophisticated/latest that other cybercrime units in the world … They can detect the location of the owner of Facebook account of a certain person.”

Besides, the context in which this new provision is important – Sotto pushed it after social media exposed him. This was not in reaction to lies and falsehoods. This was in reaction to truth.

The bloggers made the public and the mainstream media aware of his use of passages without proper attribution– and now Sotto is hitting back.

There’s also a debate on the country’s libel laws as advocates also push for the decriminalization of libel.

But Sotto also showed that he has no interest in having a mature, thoughtful discussion on an important issue, saying in the radio interview “Alisin na natin ang gag sa masama [sa] broadcast, sa radyo, sa TV. Kung malaya sa Internet, pwede silang mambastos, mambaboy…gawin na din natin sa media. Kailangan pare-parehas.”

Still, the Sotto fiasco has had one positive effect – it gave Filipino netizens a chance to demonstrate their power.

They did it last year when a video clip of a crying dancing boy on Willie Revillame’s show sparked such intense outrage that TV5 was forced to change its policies related to kids and spurred greater awareness of how children are treated on television.

Filipino netizens are flexing their muscles again today. You can check out some of the best cybercrime law memes here.

One even shows that Sotto is wrong to say Filipino netizens are picking on him. Even President Benigno Aquino III, who signed the law after all, is facing criticism.

The meme shows a picture of the late former senator Benigno Aquino Jr. and the caption, “Mr. President, this man died to give Filipinos a voice. … Oh wait, he’s your dad.”

Someone even turned the alleged PNP warning posts into a meme that pokes fun at the Aquino administration’s tourism slogan. The heading reads: “Freedom of Speech. More fun in the Philippines.”

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